Ahlan wa sahlan! Welcome to the first Radio Lajee program. For our first edition, 14 year old Miras Al Azzeh has prepared a special story about the traditional Palestinian dance, Dabke.

In it, he talks about what Dabke means to the Palestinian people and to him personally. He also interviews a Dabke teacher at the Centre, some of the young performers, and his own grandfather who reminisces about Dabke in the days before Occupation.

This story kicks off our podcast series which you can now subscribe to by right (or alt) clicking on the “Podcast Feed” link at the top of this page, copying the URL/Link Location, and pasting it into the subscribe-to-podcast dialog box in your favourite podcatching application eg iTunes, Juice, etc.

MIRAS AL AZZEH: I’m Miras. I’ve been dancing Dabke for 5 years. It means a lot to me, so I made this story about it. Hope you like it.

(sound of children at a Dabke dancing class)

Nasim Abu Isha is one of the Dabke teachers at the Lajee Centre. He runs classes every Thursday for 2 hours. Our troupe now has 20 dancers; 12 boys and 8 girls.

NASIM ABU ISHA: I started learning Dabke since 1998. Before [I was] ten years or eleven, I saw my friend dancing Dabke. I was surprised…[I thought] how do you do that? I can’t do that. So, I started step by step learning how to dance like him. Then I finished training and I preferred [the idea of] being a teacher so I started with [the] Lajee [Centre] teaching Dabke.

When I teach Dabke I feel like I’m free…and I try to translate this feeling into moves. Maybe the people will understand. Maybe, maybe not. But I hope that they understand my message. But, when you teach Dabke, the people who are learning…they start making a new life, especially the children. I hope to make the children [feel] free, especially while they are growing up.

MIRAS AL AZZEH: 14 year old Maysan is one of the dancers in Nasim’s class.

MAYSAN: When I dance Dabke, I feel that I’m defending Palestine. I feel that I’m like [a] mirror, showing the people our tradition and identity. Also, with each movement, I feel that I’m breaking the Israeli separation wall and the checkpoints.

MIRAS AL AZZEH: Dabke wasn’t always political. Sabreen Asad is also a member of Nasim’s class. She explains the history of Dabke before 1948.

SABREEN ASAD: Dabke is the Palestinian traditional folk dance. It can be performed by both males and females or collectively. Before Al Naqba – ‘The Catastrophe’ in 1948, Dabke was performed at weddings, harvest seasons and other celebratory occasions.

MIRAS AL AZZEH: My grandfather is now 76 years old. He was born in Beit Jibreen and he can still remember what Dabke was like back then.

GRANDFATHER, MOHAMMAD AL AZZEH: Every region had its own version of Dabke. In the north, the dance was punctuated by lots of jumping and vigorous movements; whereas in the south, the movements were softer and more routine.

In each village there were many Dabke troupes. At times of celebration, each group took part in the ceremony and would enlist a special dancer (who we called a ‘Louweir’) who would instruct and lead the other dancers. Generally, all groups would sing and play the flute (which we call, in Arabic, a ‘Shoubaba’) while they danced. Today, the children who dance Dabke, keep our tradition alive.

MIRAS AL AZZEH: When I hear my grandfather say that, it makes me feel happy and proud because I know that when I dance Dabke I’m protecting my country’s heritage.

As a Palestinian, I don’t know what the future will be, but I hope to dance Dabke forever.

Miras, thanks. Never heard of Dabke before and not being much of a dancer, I’d never really thought that it could be so important. Interesting stuff. Keep up the good work. Also, do you have any videos of Dabke? I’d like to see it in action.
Cheers,
J

Hi Miras,
Thanks for your podcast! Although I live in Australia I have Lebanese ancestors, and the Dabke was always an important part of celebrations amongst my parents and grandparents. Until I listened to your story I didn’t really understand the significance of the Dabke in your society. In an age where young people in the West are more engrossed in Playstations and mobile phones, you provided a wonderful insight into the history of the dance and its important place in your cultural history. I’m full of admiration for a young man like you, at 14, understanding the importance & significance of something that should not fall into obscurity and should always remind the youth of today of their rich, cultural ancestory. Thanks mate! keep up the good work.
PS: You have a great voice for radio!

Hey Miras, I look forward to hearing more - so great that you can share your stories via podcast and an interesting first subject. I really got a sense of what this means to you and the place of Dabke in your culture, and I wanted to know more, which is always a good sign.

I miss dancing Dabke with everyone this summer and watching the Dabke troupe perform. I hope to see you all perform here in the US very soon and can’t wait to see you all again this summer! Keep up the great work!

Masa al Khair ya Miras,
Thanks for your subject. I am born and live in France and I have a Tunisian Background. Though they do not dance dabke in Tunisia, it is well-known thanks to great artists like Fairuz. I really enjoyed your subject and the way you choose to talk about it. Nice to here your good english but also your granpa speaking in palestinian. I Love dance for it always make people meet each other and enjoy being together , in fact Art ,in general, has this power of uniting people in many different ways…
Hope to hear another story about fen al falestini!!!